Canon 135mm f2L USM review: An oldie but a goodie

Canon 135mm f/2L USM: A solid performer and a good deal second hand?

16 years on from its launch the 135mm f/2L USM is still a solid option for portrait, sport and low-light photography. That said as lens development continues to evolve recent telephoto primes like the Sigma 85mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM and Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM do demonstrate notable improvements in Sharpness. Although performing well in all our DxOMark Lens Metric Scores the Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM only ranks 5th for EF mount telephoto primes on the EOS 5D Mark II and new in terms of quality to price ratio the Sigma 85mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM is noticeably sharper and a couple of hundred pounds cheaper. If you can pick up a Canon EF 135mm f/2L for a good price second-hand however then this very capable telephoto prime lens could be a bit of a bargain.

Ranking sharpness vs. age the trend in the main demonstrates newer telephoto primes have the edge but buying the 135mm f/2L USM second-hand could be a bargain for a very capable lens.

Further readings for the Canon 135mm f2L USM review: An oldie but a goodie

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i don't like this kind of testing.

Canon 135L

This just shows how meaningless your new metric is. Your own measurements do not show any noticeable difference. There is almost none here: http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=108&Camera=453&Sample=0&FLI=0&API=0&LensComp=756&CameraComp=453&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=0&APIComp=2

Also, comparing 85 and 135mm can be tricky. For the same background blur, you need f/1.4 at 85mm vs. f/2 at 135mm (same physical aperture). The 135L is then really sharper, much less PF/LoCA.

BTW, nobody buys the 135L for sharpness - not that it is not sharp. It has gorgeous bokeh. Your "second hand" recommendation is really stupid.